Rowan’s Student Government Association started their senate meeting on Monday, Oct. 12 by announcing three goals for the year: continuity, engagement and wellbeing.

Alison Novak, chair of Rowan’s Affordability Taskforce, joined the meeting to discuss a few topics at hand, most notably the affordability allies network at the university.

The affordability allies network is a program that helps educate students on their financial needs. If a student is seeking help, a trained student will assist them with any financial questions. The training consists of a 30-minute course and is not challenging to students.

“[The Affordability Allies Network] is a network of faculty, staff and especially students on campus who are trained and able to help direct people to where they can get financial help if they need it,” Novak said. “The idea is to take about a 30-minute training session so that you can help people know where to turn when they need it.”

SGA Executive Vice President Sam Mardini then spoke about some bylaw changes that he’s worked on. The goal of these changes is to shorten the petitioning time for new clubs.

“I want to make it easier for clubs to get chartered on campus faster, because right now they need to petition for a full year before getting chartered. I want to shorten that, and I’ll have more details by the next senate,” Mardini said.

Two new clubs will be petitioning this year after being successfully voted in by the student senate. These clubs include the 3D Printing Club and the Women of Color Alliance.

The 3D Printing Club hopes to find a following in students interested in 3D printing, while the Women of Color Alliance (WOCA) will strive to get women of color involved in the school more and bolster the inclusivity, equity and diversion aspect of student life.

Some more good news came from Assistant Vice President of Facilities and Operations Liam Cutri-French, who stated that the pop-up park at Rowan University is to launch this week. If all goes to plan, students can enjoy the park starting Wednesday.

“The furniture will hopefully be out this week, hopefully by Wednesday morning,” Cutri-French said.

Following this announcement, AVP of University Advancement Joe Frascella then spoke about the upcoming event “Can the Van,” an initiative to help donate goods to those in need. Students will be able to donate from home this year from Rowan’s website.

Last year, Rowan’s on-campus food pantry The SHOP received 457 items, and Frascella hopes that students can top that number this year.

The Commissioners of Community Standards and the Student Financial Control Board also welcomed new members during the meeting. The commissioners included Josalyn Burt, Nick Kurth, Jamar Green and Emily McGrath, and the Student Financial Control Board voted on and welcomed Jonathan Phan, Paige Bathurst, Erica Mittenzwei, Nicholas Gushue, Janvi Patel, Sahil Bhatt, Eric D’Anna, Matt Cangemi and Alex Boyko.

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